Robert Ehrlich on Tax Reform

Former Republican MD Governor; previously Representative (MD-2)

Voted YES on making the Bush tax cuts permanent.

Vote to pass a bill that would permanently extend the cuts in last year's $1.35 trillion tax reduction package, many of which are set to expire in 2010. It would extend relief of the marriage penalty, reductions in income tax rates, doubling of the child tax credit, elimination of the estate tax, and the expansion of pension and education provisions. The bill also would revise a variety of Internal Revenue Service tax provisions, including interest, and penalty collection provisions. The penalties would change for the failure to pay estimated taxes; waive minor, first-time error penalties; exclude interest on unintentional overpayments from taxable income; and allow the IRS greater discretion in the disciplining of employees who have violated policies.

Voted YES on Tax cut package of $958 B over 10 years.

Vote to pass a bill that would cut all income tax rates and make other tax cuts of $958.2 billion over 10 years. The bill would convert the five existing tax rate brackets, which range from 15 to 39.6 percent, to a system of four brackets with rates of 10 to 33 percent.

Voted YES on eliminating the "marriage penalty".

Vote on a bill that would reduce taxes for married couple by approximately $195 billion over 10 years by removing provisions that make taxes for married couples higher than those for two single people. The bill is identical to HR 6 that was passed by the House in February, 2000.

Voted YES on $46 billion in tax cuts for small business.

Provide an estimated $46 billion in tax cuts over five years. Raise the minimum wage by $1 an hour over two years. Reduce estate and gift taxes, grant a full deduction on health insurance for self-employed individuals, increase the deductible percentage of business meal expenses to 60 percent in 2002, and designate 15 renewal communities in urban rural areas.

Reduce the capital gains tax .

Ehrlich co-sponsored the Capital Gains Tax Reduction Act:

Amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide maximum rates of tax on capital gains of 15 percent for individuals and 28 percent for corporations and to index the basis of assets of individuals for purposes of determining gains and losses.

Phaseout the death tax.

Ehrlich co-sponsored the Death Tax Elimination Act:

Title: To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to phaseout the estate and gift taxes over a 10-year period.

Summary: Repeals, effective January 1, 2011, current provisions relating to the basis of property acquired from a decedent. Provides with respect to property acquired from a decedent dying on January 1, 2011, or later that:

property shall be treated as transferred by gift; and

the basis of the person acquiring the property shall be the lesser of the adjusted basis of the decedent or the fair market value of the property at the date of the decedent's death.

Requires specified information to be reported concerning non-cash assets over $1.3 million transferred at death and certain gifts exceeding $25,000.

Makes the exclusion of gain on the sale of a principal residence available to heirs.

Revises current provisions concerning the transfer of farm real to provide that gain on such
exchange shall be recognized to the estate only to the extent that the fair market value of such property exceeds such value on the date of death.

Provides a similar rule for certain trusts.

Amends the special rules for allocation of the generation-skipping tax (GST) exemption to provide that if any individual makes an indirect skip during such individual's lifetime, any unused portion of such individual's GST exemption shall be allocated to the property transferred to the extent necessary to make the inclusion ratio for such property zero; and

if the amount of the indirect skip exceeds such unused portion, the entire unused portion shall be allocated to the property transferred.

Provides that, if an allocation of the GST exemption to any transfers of property is deemed to have been made at the close of an estate tax inclusion period, the value of the property shall be its value at such time.